How to achieve before and after photo for client of industrial site?

ContentedVideo · Sep 25, 2017

Hello guys,

Just about to purchase a Mavic Pro but can't find the answer to my question through my local electronics store or in the forum.

My client wants a before and after shot of their site so I figure I can fly the Mavic to the exact same altitude but how do I get the exact GPS location?

Would I use waypoints and then cut stills from the video or photo burst mode? Have been reading a bit on drone lapse online.

Cheers,
Anna

tracer bullet · Sep 25, 2017

You might need to give more info on size of site or anything else helpful. From where I'm reading it sounds like you can just lift off from the same place twice, to the same height, etc. and this shouldn't be tough. Apparently there's more to it.

ContentedVideo · Sep 25, 2017

Thanks Tracer. Initially that's what I thought too but someone mentioned to me that it would depend on the angle of the gimbal etc. to get an exact match of the shot. Someone else also told me that Litchi app is better than DJI go at achieving what I want.

Varekai · Sep 26, 2017

If you're needing to get absolutely aligned shots, I would place a gopro mount on top of, or mount to the side of a tree and use a gopro... but otherwise I think making a "permanent" mark on the ground for take off, reaching the same height, and compass oriented the same direction, you should get close enough.I don't know if any software could produce "exact" duplicate pics.

lisadoc · Sep 26, 2017

ContentedVideo said:
Someone else also told me that Litchi app is better than DJI go at achieving what I want.

Litchi does this perfectly with the creation of a waypoint mission.

DJI GS Pro (note, this is not "DJI Go") can also do this as well (and it's free). Simply create a new mission and choose "Waypoint Route". All the actions and gimbal settings can be created there for each point.

lisadoc · Sep 26, 2017

Varekai said:
I don't know if any software could produce "exact" duplicate pics.

That's not true. Most of the mission software options nowadays can pretty much duplicate the shots, with "better than human judgment" behavior.

Varekai · Sep 26, 2017

@lisadoc , Thank you for enlightening me. I all for learning new things, thats why we are here.

lisadoc · Sep 26, 2017

Varekai said:
@lisadoc , Thank you for enlightening me. I all for learning new things, thats why we are here.

Absolutely! Try them out. They're pretty cool. Here's a neat example of a time lapse over multiple seasons:

lisadoc · Sep 26, 2017

And another one:

Varekai · Sep 26, 2017

@lisadoc , THAT is awesome!! What program/app was that? I just looked at the DJI app but reviews are not impressive... school me please, lol.

lisadoc · Sep 26, 2017

Varekai said:
@lisadoc , THAT is awesome!! What program/app was that? I just looked at the DJI app but reviews are not impressive... school me please, lol.

Either Litchi or DJI GS Pro will work perfectly. FPV and Autopilot also can accomplish the exact same thing. DJI GS Pro is the only one of the bunch that is free. Litchi is simple to use and missions can be created on a regular PC (much easier in my opinion), but costs a few bucks. FPV is about the same but without the computer functionality. Autopilot is much more feature-rich but is also a lot less user-friendly and has a steeper learning curve.

Varekai · Sep 26, 2017

@lisadoc , well living here on the california central coast we don't really have "seasons", LOL... But I may download and play with it a bit. Thanks for the insight.

ContentedVideo · Oct 1, 2017

lisadoc said:
Absolutely! Try them out. They're pretty cool. Here's a neat example of a time lapse over multiple seasons:

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Thank you so much for all the knowledge exchange. Love your lapses too. You have certainly got the creative juices flowing now!